Fireproof door.



PATENTED JULY 10, 1906;

E. B. TONNSEN.

FIREPROOP DOOR.

APPLICATION FILED APB..1.1905.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FIREPROOF DOOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

vkatented.Jury 10, 1906.

Application filed April 1, 1905. SerialNo. 253.359.

[0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ELIBERT B. TONNSEN, residing in Milwaukee, in thecounty of Milwaukee and State of Wisconsin, have invented new and usefulImprovements in Fireproof Doors, of which the following is adescription, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which area part of this specification.

My invention relates to an improved fireproof door, or means in thenature of a door or shutter for closing an aperture in a wall of abuilding in such manner as to be proof against fire, either bypermitting the fire to set the door or closure in flame or by permittingthe fire to pass through or destroy the door or closure so as to permitof the passage of fire through it.

My invention consists of the door, its parts, and combinations, asherein described and claimed, or the equivalents thereof.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is an elevation of my improved door. Fig. 2 isa longitudinal section of fragments of the door, exhibiting my improvedconstruction.

That my improved door may be strong and durable in character, whilelight in weight and inexpensive of construction, the frame of the door,including the longitudinal stiles and the transverse rails of the door,is formed of wood, thereby making a frame strong and durable, light inweight, and of inexpensive construction.

In the drawings the door shown in Fig. 1 has such a frame, the parts 2 2of Fig. 2 being transverse rails of the frame and made of wood. Theentire frame is similarly constructed of wood, and this frame isentirely covered, and thereby protected, by sheet metal in ordinarydoors, advisably of iron or steel, forming a fireproof case 3, inclosingthe entire wood frame. In building the door the metal case for themiddle stile and the middle rail is first made and the wood interiorstile is inserted in the case, and the transverse rail or the partsthereof are then inserted in the case, and the case being made for theoutside stiles and the end rails the wood interior stiles are insertedin the cases, and

the wood end rails are inserted in their cases,

and the parts are then put together, and the joints at the middle maythen be all soldered or brazed together, or joints may be made bysecuring the ends of overlapping parts of the case to the Wood by meansof screws 4.

M In making the metal cases for the stiles and the rails, the edge ofthe case at the edge of the stile and the rails which form the walls ofthe area in the door for a panel or panels instead of being fittedtightly to the wood of the stile or rail is carried inwardly therefrom,forming non-contacting walls 5, which being continued toward each otherare before they come together bent inwardly, forming panelwalls 6 6, andthen one of these panel-walls is carried across the bottom of thepanel-opening and behind and beyond the other panelwall and is thenrovided with a return-bend 7, forming a pociiet along near the surfaceof the wood of the stile or rail, into which a flange 8 of the otherpanel-wall enters, thereby forming a seam or joint between thesepanel-walls, and a closure of the case inclosing the stile or rail. Atthe same time apanelgroove is formed in the casing by the casing andalong on the inside of the wood, stile, or rail. When the door is puttogether as hereinbefore described, the panel 9 is put in place in thegrooves of the case along the stiles and rails of the door and in theareas provided for panels.

The anels 9 are made of asbestos, ground and pu verized and mixed withand held together by some cement or earthy material, the panel being,when dry and set, firm and hard and absolutely fireproof. The panel maybe with or without ornamentation, as desired. The asbestos slabs ofwhich these panels are made may be formed with an interior wire fabric10, if desired, whereby the strength of the panel Would be increased;but such interposed wire in the panel is not ordinarily required and maybe omitted with entire safety in doors or closures of buildings of smallsize or ordinary construction.

What I claim as my invention is 1. In afireproof door-likeaperture-closure, a wood frame having panel-openings, and a metal casefor the frame consisting of sheet metal bent to fit about and incloseeach rail and stile of the frame, the margins of the sheet metal alongthe edges thereof being turned inwardly from the side surfaces of thecase at the edges of the panel-aperture or apertures andbeing again bentand turned inwardly of the case away from the anel aperture or aperturesforming the walTs and bottom of a panel groove or grooves and the edgesof the sheet metal being secured to each other at and closing the bottomof the groove.

2. In a fireproof door, a wood frame including rails and stiles about apanel aperture or apertures, a stile or rail case of a sin gle piece ofsheet metal, the sheet metal being bent into an elongated chamberinclosing a Wood stile or rail the edges of the metal approaching eachother along the lengths of the case and medially of the panel frontinginner edge thereof, the inneredges of the metal being turned inwardlytoward the stile or rail and then brought together and secured to 10each other forming a panel-groove with the 1' metal-securing seam at thebottom of the groove and inside of the case and adjacent to the rail orstile.

In testimony whereof I aifix my signature in presence of tWo Witnesses.

ELIBERT B. TON NSEN.

Witnesses:

C. T. BENEDICT, ANNA F. SCHMIDTBAUER.

